Store owner Ed Sommers and manager John Speckine want you to know right up front that you should expect to be treated like an old hunting or fishing buddy when you walk into BJ's.  We'll poke fun, tell bad jokes, and expect you to poke fun and tell bad jokes right back at us. It's all in good fun.

Ed and John have known each other since the summer 2000 when they both joined that incarnation of the locally-known bar-band 'Border Line'.  They spent the next four years rehearsing nearly every week and playing almost every Friday and Saturday night.  They were the 'comedy relief' of the group and were guilty of many a practical joke on a fellow band member or a snappy retort to one another during a show.

That's Ed in the middle and John at back-left.

While they enjoyed sharing the stage several times a year with the 1960s group 'The Rivieras' (California Sun), they both experienced the highlight of their musical careers in September 2002 when the band was invited to open for country heavy-weights Keith Urban and Montgomery Gentry.

We won't go into detail here about the long, blonde wig John sported in front of 20,000 people, but feel free to bring it up.  However, we will spout freely about the finest single item either one of us has ever had to autograph (wonderful, unforgettable, amazing), the memory of which elicits sighs of longing.  (You'll have to ask.)

Nowadays, Ed is a Medical Laboratory professional at a large Health System in northern Indiana.  While not an avid hunter or fisherman himself, he's learning on the fly during his trips to the store.  It is the full intent of John and some of the local charter captains to get Ed and his family out on the Lake for a day of fishing and maybe even some 'chumming' (as we like to call the activity generally engaged by those suffering from seasickness - including yours truly).

Ed in his band promo shot.  He's much more, um, 'seasoned' now.

John IS an avid hunter and fisherman and handles day-to-day operations of the store and its Outfitter functions.  He got the 'outfitting' bug from his paternal grandparents who owned a fishing lodge in Ontario, above Lake Superior, in the 1960s and 70s.  He's been guiding hunters and fishermen, in one form or another, for over 20 years.  He is a proud disabled vet, former Cincinnati Reds minor league free agent signee (never played - ask if you want to know why) and Atlanta Braves scout (which has nothing to do with BJ's - he just likes to brag about it).  He has also worked as a stand-up comedian with VERY limited success, so be ready to listen to the occasionally embroidered, but still 100% true, An unusual fishing accident caused a small coho to be embedded in John's right ear (see picture), which required surgery for extraction.  Were all surgical tools removed?  We're not sure, but it WOULD explain a few things.

Our store credo is simple:  "Fishermen caught telling the truth will be soundly flogged."  (The credo also applies to hunters, but there wasn't enough room on the T-shirts.)  With this in mind, John is currently planning a series of free seminars for area young hunters and fishermen entitled:

"Fishing Lies and You:  A Beginner's Guide to Embellishment"

In these free seminars, he will teach skills of exaggeration passed down to him from his Texas-born father and arts of embellishment taught by his maternal grandfather (100% Irishman that he was).  His Native American maternal grandmother also taught his some 'tricks' to ensure a good day's hunting or fishing which John will be happy to pass along to his charges.

He is certain these seminars will receive high praise and support from both parenting and religious groups, as well as school boards, throughout the region.

We'll see you in the store!!

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